Pop Superstar Lionel Richie revealed that his 80’s Smash Hit ‘Dancing on the Ceiling’ was inspired by a dispute with his neighbours. In an interview with The Sunday Times the singer explains he was living on the second floor of an apartment block in Manhattan at the time of writing the song, which reached the UK Top 10.

“I loved the place, great spot and great view of the river, but one year the apartment above mine was rented out to this young, really inconsiderate couple. They were banging around up there day and night. I had heavy thuds above my head for months. I must have asked them a hundred times, really politely, if they could keep it down and make sure their visitors took their shoes off, but nothing doing.

In the end I snapped and gave them a taste of their own medicine by dancing on the ceiling. Sometimes, like in the video, I got 20 or 30 of my mates to join me. They moved out three months later!”

The song was written by Mike Frenchik, Lionel Richie and Carlos Rios and performed by Richie on his 1986 album of the same name. It reached number 2 in the US Top 100, and number 7 in the UK Singles Chart.